When youíre already feeling big and wide, you donít need clothes that make you look like you feel.

Thatís why I avoided wearing maternity clothes for as long as I could.

I even did the old rubber-band-through-the-button-hole trick to keep wearing my work pants after I couldnít zip them up all the way.

But around 16 weeks, I had to bust out the maternity pants to fit my burgeoning belly.

And I havenít looked back.

Just finding maternity clothes has been frustrating. Few department stores have a maternity section anymore.

The specialty maternity stores arenít in my price range. Call me cheap Ė I prefer to call it being thrifty Ė but Iím not going to shell out $75 for pants that Iím only going to wear seven or eight months. I donít even spend that much on regular pants, so thereís no way Iím breaking the bank to cover this baby bump.

Whatís a girl on a budget to do?

Hit the thrift and consignment stores, and make the most of whatís already in the closet.

My mother-in-law and I hit the thrift store circuit while I could still fit into my regular jeans back when I was in the first few months of pregnancy.

I couldnít believe some of the ugly clothes that clothing designers think expecting women will wear.

Why do designers think we want to wear tops that look like tents? Why would I want to accentuate my stomach with a gaudy paisley print?

I get that comfort outweighs fashion, but I still want to be able to walk out of the house without feeling like a clown.

I bought a few shirts and a dress at Kid to Kid on Park Road in Charlotte. At JLC WearHouse, I found a pair of black pants. The only full-priced maternity pants I own come from Macyís, and they were only $27.

The rest of my wardrobe has come from shopping at Goodwill and going to a garage sale, where I finally found a pair of denim shorts so I could survive the summer heat without wearing workout shorts all the time.

My mother-in-law has been scoping out the second-hand sales near Durham, too. She sent me more maternity wear that will get me through the final months.

Last week I bought a pair of maternity dresses from the local Target, which I felt guilty about until I saw the ď20 percent off the lowest clearance priceĒ sign and realized I spent less than $10 for each dress.

Iíve made the most of my pre-pregnancy wardrobe. I wore my regular shirts as long as I could, even after I switched to wearing maternity pants. The long shirt trend made it easier for me to keep from bearing my belly while wearing what I already have. A couple of empire waist dresses give my belly room to grow and a chance to wash those maternity pants that stay in heavy rotation. My husbandís T-shirts have been nice to wear around the house, too.

Page 2 of 2 - Iíve been lucky in the belly bump department. I didnít really show until I was around six months pregnant, so I didnít need to buy many new clothes all at once. Now that Iíve hit the 7-month-mark, you can tell Iím expecting, but my stomach isnít sticking out like a watermelon. My mom tells me that she didnít get very big when carrying me.

Through some thrifty shopping ó and the realization itís OK not to look as polished as the pregnant Princess Kate Middleton ó I have a wardrobe that will get me through until Iím due.

Reporter Amanda Memrick started at The Gazette in 2004. She moved from covering education to the business beat in April. Her husband Matt is a copy editor at The Gazette.